A California tech startup that has drawn attention for its alleged preference for hiring “hot” women has become embroiled in a public meltdown after provocative social media posts by employees triggered widespread backlash.
San Francisco insurance-tech company Corgi is now better known online for controversial dating standards, “mean-girl” accusations and internal friction than for its insurance business. The turmoil has even prompted CEO Nico Laqua to issue an awkward defense of the culture at the reported $4 billion startup.
Brooke LeBlanc, Corgi’s head of community, deleted her X account this week after a highly publicized list of dating requirements spread across social media.
The controversy intensified when another Corgi employee, who uses the name Nicole Clash, faced criticism over repeated online use of an ableist slur and a now-deleted post that appeared to downplay concerns about the N-word. A colleague subsequently denounced the remarks.
“Reading is hard for the retarded it’s ok I understand,” Clash wrote in an X post dated Sept. 20, according to Insurance Business, which identified her as a Corgi marketing employee.
In a separate post that was later removed, Clash said she would “not attempt to police” people who use the N-word. The comment prompted angry reactions on X, where users branded her a “mean girl,” as well as an apparent rebuke from fellow employee Ella Schlaghecke. The Post did not view the original post but reviewed screenshots of it.
“There is a distinct difference between believing that society should not censor people and deciding that we have no responsibility to challenge language that dehumanizes others,” wrote Schlaghecke, who is listed on LinkedIn as a partnerships manager.
Clash said she deleted some of the posts after reconsidering them. She also said the comments were her own and did not reflect the views of Corgi.
The episode followed LeBlanc’s viral list of qualities she said she wanted in a future husband. Her requirements included being “post economic (still hardworking),” “fit and sober,” “healthy masculine” and between 35 and 42 years old.
“Sorry, I don’t want to date a loser!” LeBlanc added.
LeBlanc, 29, later claimed that the list attracted five potential suitors before she shut down her X account.
Corgi’s 26-year-old chief executive responded by posting a lengthy criticism of “cancel culture” after LeBlanc’s comments went viral.
“If I’ve learned one thing about startups, it’s that VCs and very online figures care mostly about press and social media. However, real hackers and builders care about making a durable business, and that’s what we’re doing at Corgi,” Laqua wrote on X.
Corgi later said Laqua’s free-speech defense had been posted before Clash’s remarks became known. The company added that he does not support the language in question and that it does not represent Corgi’s position.
The online firestorm has also raised an obvious question: how did an insurance startup become the center of a social media scandal?
“Suddenly, people were looking at Corgi for all the wrong reasons,” said public relations veteran Chris Harihar, discussing the reaction to LeBlanc’s post. “Now, you’re the company known for provocative or offensive posts, not insurance.”
Harihar noted that provocative content can help a young company attract attention, but warned that a reputation built around controversy may alienate more conventional customers. “At some point, the wrong kind of attention costs you money,” he said.
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Corgi describes itself as an “AI native, full-stack” insurance platform that underwrites and sells coverage directly to businesses. The company has also become associated with a hustle-focused workplace philosophy that promotes 12-hour workdays, including weekends.
“If your days off happen to be Saturday and Sunday every week, you will not have a place at Corgi,” Laqua boasted on the 20vchq podcast, alleging he sleeps 3-4 hours per night on an office mattress.
That image helped fuel the nickname “Corgi girls,” tied to claims that the startup uses “hot” and highly online women as part of its marketing strategy. SFisms described “a steady stream of photogenic women announcing their marketing and growth roles in viral X posts.”
Corgi has rejected that characterization, calling the rumor “false” in a statement provided by its attorney, Jeremy Eisemann.
“We hire people for their ability to contribute to our business. Characterizing our colleagues as a marketing tactic is disrespectful to them and misrepresents our culture,” he said.
Corgi announced lofty plans to open 100 “Corgi Cafes” operating 24/7 to serve smoothies and snacks to fellow late-night techies — but reportedly removed the staffer in charge of that expansion this week.
The 400-person company said it remains committed to the cafe expansions and is also expanding its products to include “admitted insurance and reinsurance,” among other offerings.
“There is a good amount of eye-rolling in their direction. A lot of people in tech and VCs are like, this is ridiculous,” one San Francisco venture capitalist told The California Post.
“But to give them some amount of credit, consumer insurance and fintech at the end of the day is brand driven. Their play clearly seems to be are we going to get a certain kind of customer to our insurance products with a non-corporate, Gen Z voice,” the investor continued.
Aaron Peskin, a former city supervisor and critic of San Francisco’s tech industry, said Corgi’s cafes — which have been lambasted online as “smelly” and poorly maintained — left him wondering, ““What the f— is going on in this town?
“Look, immature, silly people and organizations are not a new thing on the planet Earth,” Peskin said. “It’s like watching a train wreck.”